Transition from positive to negative indirect CO<sub>2</sub> effects on the vegetation carbon uptake.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 38374331.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-45957-x and PMC identifier 10876672.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Although elevated atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> concentration (eCO<sub>2</sub>) has substantial indirect effects on vegetation carbon uptake via associated climate change, their dynamics remain unclear. Here we investigate how the impacts of eCO<sub>2</sub>-driven climate change on growing-season gross primary production have changed globally during 1982-2014, using satellite observations and Earth system models, and evaluate their evolution until the year 2100. We show that the initial positive effect of eCO<sub>2</sub>-induced climate change on vegetation carbon uptake has declined recently, shifting to negative in the early 21st century. Such emerging pattern appears prominent in high latitudes and occurs in combination with a decrease of direct CO<sub>2</sub> physiological effect, ultimately resulting in a sharp reduction of the current growth benefits induced by climate warming and CO<sub>2</sub> fertilization. Such weakening of the indirect CO<sub>2</sub> effect can be partially attributed to the widespread land drying, and it is expected to be further exacerbated under global warming.